In Yucatec Maya, certain categories of verb exhibit an alternation
between long and short vowels under the following circumstances: When the
sole suffix is one of the two consonantal ones, /-l/ and /-k/, a short
copy of the root vowel appears in the suffix--
/wen+l/ --> wenel "sleep"
/wen+k/ --> wenek "might sleep"
/?ok+l/ --> ?okol "enter"
/?ok+k/ --> ?okok "might enter"
--but when the suffix is syllabic or
the suffixes are syllabifiable, the root vowel shows up as long and
low-toned, as in
ween+s+ik "put to sleep"
?ook+en "Enter!"
High-toned roots do not alternate in this way:
/(H)luub+l/ --> (H)luubul "fall"
(H)luub+s+ik "fell (causative)".
My current analysis of the Yucatec pattern is to posit an
underlying low-toned root with long vowel for verbs like [wenel, weensik]
and a redistribution of the root moras just in case the suffix consonant
is otherwise unsyllabifiable. (The other side of the coin from
compensatory lengthening.)
I would appreciate any data suggesting similar patterns in other
languages. If this request produces a substantial number of comments or
other examples, I'll post a summary later. Thanks.
Bob Howren, Dept. of Linguistics, UNC, Chapel Hill
r_howrenunc.edu

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Kathy

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